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How to Pack for a Trip to Europe

Heading to Europe this summer? Traveler contributing writer Nick Remsen explores how to pack in style.

If you’re like me, you often have to bounce between climates while away from home. This means smart packing. And chances are, if you’re a seasoned enough traveler, you’ll prefer to take a carry-on. Of course, this is contingent on the amount of time spent away. I recently completed a London–Paris–Thiruvananthapuram, India–Dubai–Palm Beach–Puerto Vallarta arc, on which I would have done anything to have traveled lighter, but two months on the road required an under-the-plane sized bag. Alas.

Here is an idea, though: One week in Europe, three distinct climes, with only a carry-on and the wind at your back. I’ve picked a trio of locations for comparison, all with different atmospheres in June or July: Punta Ala, in coastal Tuscany, Italy (beach-y); Reykjavík, Iceland (temperate and cold at night); and Berlin, Germany (urban and warm). So whether it’s tanning poolside in trunks that double as running shorts Punta Ala or bar-hopping on a hot night in Berlin’s Kreuzberg, here’s how to make the very most of your week off this summer—and how to look great when doing it.